


Orbiting Infinity

by PrincessClexa



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Abandonment, Angst, Apocalypse, Best Friends, Betrayal, Big Brother Bellamy, Bisexual Raven Reyes, Blood and Gore, Clexa, Dark, Dark Clarke, Death, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Linctavia - Freeform, Love, Mutant Powers, Octavia Blake & Clarke Griffin are Best Friends, Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Relationship(s), Sacrifice, Sad Lexa, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Smut, Soulmates, Superpowers, Survival, Tears, Torture, Training
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-19
Updated: 2016-02-07
Packaged: 2018-05-15 00:28:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5764759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessClexa/pseuds/PrincessClexa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The year is 2158. Lexa and Clarke belong to a civilisation, buried deep underground, locked away to ensure their survival. They are surviving, but only just. They’re best friends who are oblivious to the crumbing society around them until one day out of nowhere, Clarke is taken and no trace can be found. Lexa struggles to cope with the absence of Clarke and as the years pass she slowly begins lose hope in finding out what happened to her best friend who now only lives in distant memories.  Panic sets in as The Pagon slowly begins to run out of resources. Oxygen, food, water… and that’s only the beginning. A solution is found, it's dangerous, deadly even. But necessary. Lexa volunteers because what else does she have left. Right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Quick disclaimer: The only things that belong to me are the plot and the inevitable spelling and grammar mistakes I hope to keep to a minimum. I have loads of ideas for this fan fiction and whilst it might seem like it's slow starting, give it a few chapters.

Clarke's POV

Clarke whimpered as she felt a cool, ice cold blade press deep into her clavicle.

'Do it' a voice roared. It was a voice filled with exasperation and irritation, emitting power that radiated throughout the space in which Clarke was being held. It seemed they had reached the end of their patience.

'Commander, don't make me ask again' whispered the same voice, breaking slightly at the end due to the unexpected change in volume and tone.  
Clarke's vision was obscured due to an uncomfortable cloth blindfold covering her eyes. It was itchy and cold, heavy, and it weirdly felt as if it was covered with a strange frost like substance. The lack of sight was distressing because Clarke was clearly outnumbered and unarmed. There was a freezing, glacial temperature circulating that lead to Clarke feeling a subtle breath, ghosting across her face, fanning out, leaving a faint scent of mint in the air with just a hint of lavender. A smell that made her almost pass out due to the Deja-vu that followed. It left Clarke intoxicated and brought a strange sense of longing and familiarity. Whilst Clarke could clearly sense the temperature dropping, it only seemed to make her more alert, more aware of her surroundings.

'I want it done by the time I return Commander, if it isn't, I will do it myself. You know what I expect, so don't go easy on her. Remember what I told you.' Footsteps clicked across the floor, and with each step they grew quieter and more distant. Then they could be heard no more.

A clang of metal could be heard and a soft hand caressed Clarke's face, making her shiver, she closed her eyes as she leant into the touch hoping to find solace in the calming gesture, however that was her first mistake. The hand was dainty, and feminine but as it gripped her jaw, turning from caring and delicate into rough and violent, Clarke realised this mysterious person wasn't going to help her.

She cried out as her head was slammed against what felt like a cold, solid slab of marble. Clarke panicked, how could she defend herself if she couldn't see what was going on. A sudden pain ricochet through her body, starting just under her ribcage and expanding into every fibre of her being, making her arch up, doing everything in her power to get away from the source of torment. The same hand shoved her back down again, yet it lingered on Clarke's abdomen for just a second too long.

Clarke tentatively reached out her own hand, pushing past the pain pulsating through her body. Her fingers made contact with the stranger's hand and she interlocked their fingers, a gesture that felt right, as if it had been done hundreds of times before.  
Clarke heard a quick intake of breath and then a quiet voice whispered 'I can't' and the hand was yanked away.

Silence flooded the room, suffocating Clarke and she whimpered as fragments of what seemed like memories flashed through her head from out of nowhere. The memories were fleeting, getting quicker and quicker, but as each one emerged from the depths of Clarke's mind it brought with it a sharp, dagger like pain. Recollections of a young girl hunched over, with her braided hair being whipped around by the howling wind. She had an aura mainly black, with streaks of jade green flickering throughout it, round her crouched form, screaming for someone called Raven to stop. The same girl, looking older than in the previous memory, with tanned skin and eyes emerald like the forest, mysterious and sparkling, disappearing into the shadows and suddenly reappearing with a smile so bright it made Clarke blind to the rest of the world.

And Clarke saw herself. She saw herself in a room, entombed in ice, silent and unmoving. People dressed in lab coats circled her and as they moved she noticed a shadow at the door.

Suddenly it all stopped. As the pain slowly dissipated, Clarke felt a fire ignite with inside her and she started kicking and punching blindly, her foot connecting with something solid. Two strong hands slid down her biceps, down to her wrists and held her arms down and the weight of a body rested lightly on her legs, preventing her from moving. The faint aroma of mint and lavender was now everywhere, strong and heady, making Clarke's head spin. She could feel something on the edge of her consciousness, waiting to be remembered.

This person, Clarke knew them, she was sure. The hands round her wrists were shaking, yet as soon as she moved to pull her hands away and leap up, the grip tightened, making sure she was unable to move and as it tightened, the shaking became non-existent.

'Why am I here' Clarke began but she was cut off by a gentle, tender kiss. Clarke's head almost exploded, the way the strangers lips enclosed her own was comforting and safe, they moulded together perfectly, yet as Clarke leant in to deepen the kiss, tilting her head, the person pulled away. Clarke was still gasping for breath when she felt a warm drop of liquid splash onto her exposed leg. She heard a heart wrenching sob and then the pained murmur of 'may we meet again my love.' A burning sensation slicing across her neck, hot and sudden. Then nothing.

 

Clarke jerked awake and gulped in huge quantities of air as she adjusted to her surroundings. She hurried to recall her dream, it felt as if it was of great importance yet all her memory retrieved was a blank. Nothing, she remembered nothing! She gave a frustrated sigh, this always seemed to happen. She could always remember she had a dream but naught of its content. As she looked around she realised she was in the medical bay, tied down to a bed. The bed was thin with a metal frame making it stable yet uncomfortable. Her wrists were strapped tightly to the bedframe along with her ankles. She was all alone, or so she thought.

From the corridor outside the room, leading to the medical bay, she heard brisk footsteps striding towards the door at the far end and then she saw her mother, Abby Griffin and Jackson, the head nurse, enter through the opening at the end of the room. Clarke quickly closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, she didn't want another lecture from her mother on what she had done wrong this time to end up in the medical bay. Thinking back Clarke couldn't actually remember why she was here, and although that worried her slightly she was drawn back to reality by the quiet tone of Jackson's voice whispering to her mother.

'Abby, you're not thinking this through, we're three years too early. You heard what Jaha said, the programme isn't even in the final stages of planning. We have another three years before we need to begin experiments, why now, why your only daughter?'  
Clarkes hand twitched as she realised tomorrow was her twelfth birthday, she almost laughed aloud as she thought how ironic it would be if she was in hospital for her birthday, she wouldn't even get to see her friends because there was a strict policy of only family members allowed to visit. Since her mother was her only surviving relative it would be just the two of them and she probably wouldn't even be able to make time to see Clarke due to her busy schedule as a doctor.

Just as Clarke was about to open her eyes her mother spoke. 'In three years it might be too late, in three years their might be no one left to save.'  
Jackson sounded desperate. 'You realise what this means right, you're disobeying the Chancellor's direct orders, you'll be banished and unable to return. What about Clarke, she'll have no mother and father, do you really want that for her?'

Clarke's heart ached as she remembered her father's death, only two years ago. He was an honest, respectable man, loved by everyone. An engineer that found out about a radiation leak in Section Two. He decided to keep it secret as not to panic the rest of the population and went to fix it himself. The radiation was stronger than he predicted and Jake Griffin died of deadly amounts of radiation poisoning that left him screaming as his life slowly ebbed away. Section Two was out of bounds for almost a year until the radiation became diluted enough for members of the community to move back in and resume their lives as if nothing had ever happened. For Clarke however, her world had turned upside down and only thanks to the support of her closest friends did she regain a sense of normality.

Clarke drifted back into actuality and caught the end of her mother's sentence. 'If the Astra Programme is a success, Clarke won't remember anyone anyway.'  
Clarke wondered what the Astra Programme was. She had never heard of it before. Whatever it was it left her feeling scared and confused. If it made her forget everyone, how would that be a success?

'It doesn't have to be like that' Jackson almost shouted.  
'Keep your voice down' Abby whispered. 'We'll be heard.'  
'No' Jackson said adamantly. 'If you just wait a few more years the serum will be perfected. It will be legal and Clarke will be safe. We have no idea what it will do to her, no results from previous experiments to base anything on! No proof Abby, that your daughter will even survive the process.'  
'Jackson.' Abby cut him off, 'No more will be said about this. I have made up my mind. Jake would have wanted this, an opportunity for our daughter to be strong, to be a leader. To be remembered as a hero.'

Jackson laughed. 'Abby, you're kidding yourself if you think Jake would ever have wanted this. He wanted what was best for Clarke ...' A silence threatened to overtake the room until Jackson continued. 'Jake's death has changed you Abby, you need to move on. You must realise this can only end badly. An almost inaudible sigh was heard. 'If you decide to go ahead with this, I can no longer work alongside you. This goes against everything I believe to be right. Poor Clarke doesn't deserve this. Don't punish her for something that she had no control over.'  
'She'll thank me someday' came the biting response.

After a brief silence, there was a squeak of a shoe and the sounds of heavy footfalls shuffled away. They were slow and reluctant yet as time advanced, they grew quieter and quieter until a door clicked open and slammed shut. The footsteps could no longer be heard.  
Clarke sensed that her someone was still there as she had only heard one person leaving. She was proved correct as she felt a sharp prick in the crease of her elbow and a throbbing that began from the same point.

Clarke opened her eyes, seeing the silhouette of her mother in the corner of her blurred, fuzzy vision. Clarke jerked her arm to pull against the restraints. Abby glanced up at the sudden movement and a look of surprise crossed her face.  
'How long have you been awake?' she asked, a look of panic set on her face. 'How much did you hear?'

Clarke opened her mouth to demand her mother tell her everything. Why she was there, what was the Astra Programme? To ask her about the conversation she had just heard and why she was strapped down to the bed like a mentally unstable patient. However her vocal chords failed to cooperate and she was unable to form anything that even vaguely resembled a sentence. Her already tainted vision flooding black and before she could even utter a word she felt herself arm falling down and her body slumping flat, her head hitting the metal headboard. As she became fully sightless, the last thing she heard was her mother's voice, embedded with distress, shouting her name.

As Clarke awoke again, everything came back to her. She yanked her arms up expecting resistance from the restraints yet there was none. Clarke's arms weren't tied down. Glancing left and right, the room was empty, her mother was nowhere to be found.  
The clock on her bedside table showed the time to be 18:03, which was dinner time for the almost 3500 inhabitants of the underground military base Clarke lived in. Her stomach rumbled and Clarke wondered how long it had been since she had eaten. She couldn't remember. Clarke shook of the feeling of unease from the forefront of her mind and proceeded to swing her legs over the side of the bed. Slowly she planted both feet on the ground. She noticed her lower legs and feet were bare and all she was wearing was a plain white hospital gown, compulsory for every patient to wear. Once Clarke was sure she was stable enough to walk she pushed off from the bed and stood straight. Her legs trembled momentarily, leading Clarke to deliberate at how long she had been bed bound. She placed her left foot forward and began to walk at a steady pace towards the exit. She needed to find her friends.

Lexa's POV

Lexa was beginning to get concerned over the whereabouts of her best friend. Clarke hadn't shown up for breakfast or lunch and it didn't look like she was making an appearance at dinner either.

'Lex, calm down. I'm sure Clarke is fine.' Bellamy whispered as he noticed Lexa's leg bouncing up and down. This was a common occurrence for Lexa if she was nervous or worried. From the seat next to her he gave her a reassuring smile and leant in to give her a quick hug.  
Octavia slid into a seat opposite Lexa and rolled her eyes. 'You look like a lovesick puppy Alexandria. Can't you even go a day without seeing her' she laughed.  
'Don't call me that' Lexa muttered, her eyes flicking to the double doors of the canteen.  
'Not helping O' Bellamy exclaimed.

Raven and Anya appeared and took a seat either side of Octavia. 'Trouble in paradise' Anya started until she caught the murderous look Bellamy was sending her way. She proceeded to stab at her broccoli, avoiding the furious gaze of Lexa.  
'How can you even say that?' Lexa cried. 'Clarke's our friend and we haven't seen her since lights out last night. Something might have happened to her. Aren't any of you worried?' When Lexa had awoke in the morning to find Clarke's bed empty she had presumed that Clarke had already left to go and help her mother in the medical bay. However when she also didn't appear for lunch Lexa began to question her best friend's whereabouts.  
Raven started to laugh and Lexa let out a whine of frustration, causing many people to glance her way at the high pitch noise she had emitted. 'I would be worried my dear Lexi, but I can see her from here, you need to chill. She looks fine.' Raven high-fived Anya and Bellamy rolled his eyes at their childish behaviour.

Lexa turned slightly to see a slightly confused looking Clarke dressed in a pristine white medical gown. Lexa jumped up and ran to Clarke, ignoring the sniggering of her close friends round the table. Closing the distance swiftly, Lexa flew towards Clarke and halfway there Clarke's eyes met hers and she gave her the biggest smile.

Clarke and Lexa had been best friends since preschool. And especially after Clarke's father's death their bond had grown immensely. Clarke had needed somebody to help her through the painful experience and Lexa was by her side the whole time. Whilst everybody saw their close relationship and labelled them as friends, Lexa often wondered if she and Clarke could ever be anything more. Whenever she thought about Clarke in a way as more than friends, she became awfully conflicted and thought of something else instead. She couldn't encourage thoughts like that especially when Clarke clearly wasn't interested and it had the possibility of ruining their perfect friendship.

When she reached Clarke, almost colliding and knocking her to the ground, she picked her up and swung her round. Setting her back down again, Lexa stared into Clarke's sky blue eyes. A wave of emotions crashed over Lexa as the earlier panic disappeared and a state of calm washed over her. Burying her face in Clarke's long, golden curls she sighed in content and whispered 'I missed you.'  
As she pulled back Clarke looked stunned and a dazed look flickered in her eyes. She watched as Clarke shook her head and glanced back up at Lexa. She smiled yet it didn't reach her eyes. Something was wrong Lexa knew. What had happened to Clarke in the time she was gone? Physically she looked fine, yet there was something concealed in her blank expression.

'Clarke what's wrong' Lexa asked quietly.  
Clarke shivered and spoke, her voice cracking. 'I need to speak to you later, alone. Something happened. Something is going on. Lexa you need to help me, I'm scared. Please, you can't tell anyone I'm not even sure what it all means, but you have to help me.  
Lexa nodded worriedly. 'Of course I will Clarke, but I think we need to sit down. We're drawing quite a bit of attention to ourselves.'  
Clarke seemed to register what Lexa had said as she glanced round and noticed multiple individuals staring at her and Lexa, whispering to the people sat around them.

Usually mealtimes were a very controlled affair. Lexa was surprised they hadn't been reprimanded for their dismissal of the rules already. As Lexa glanced to the guard station she noticed it was empty. Lexa felt slightly alarmed at the sight, usually there's always at least two guards.  
Lexa inhaled as she realised that Clarke was reaching for her hand. As their palms connected, Clarke interlocked their fingers, as she always did, pulling Lexa towards the table their friends were seated at. Lexa mentally flattened the fluttery feeling in her stomach as she sat back down in her seat, Clarke to the left of her.

'Back from the honeymoon already' Raven taunted, earning a chuckle from Anya.  
Lexa just shook her head and ignored them both, she was just happy Clarke was safe.  
'Here comes Lincoln' Octavia smiled. Everyone knew about Octavia's not so secret crush on Lincoln, but instead of making fun of her, everyone thought it was adorable and they even had a ship name of Linctavia. Lincoln pretended like he didn't notice or care but everyone suspected he liked her back. The way the two of them flirted was evidence enough. He was just too shy to say anything.  
Lincoln sat down on the end of the table, smiled lightly at Octavia and began to speak. 'Something weird is going on today. I was pulled off guard duty in the laboratory and told to take the day off. That's practically unheard of. So I thought it was just me, but two other guards I know Emori and Jasper was told the same thing.'

It was common for children who belonged to a military family, like Lincoln, whose father was a general, to begin training around the age of twelve. The aim was to instil determination and strength into the young children so they could protect the base from any possible attacks when they became official guards at sixteen. That's what the council believed anyway.

Lincoln continued, 'I had a quick look around in the guard stations near here and they're all empty. Look over there.' Lincoln pointed to the empty guard station. 'Where are they? Paragraph Six, Section M, any guard caught leaving their post without permission is punishable by death.' Lincoln's spoon fell from his hand and clattered on the floor. There was silence round the table.

Bellamy broke it by saying 'we should finish up here and go back to the dorms. All this suspense is making me jumpy' he gave a nervous laugh and began to dig into his pudding. The rest of the table followed suit, quiet chatter occasionally passing between them.

Lexa sat in silence trying to figure out what it all meant. She prodded her food, taking note that Clarke was sat staring into space. Lexa set down her fork and moved to link her hand with Clarke's. It was meant to be a soothing gesture, and whilst it brought Clarke out of her trace, it made her jerk away. Clarke moved her hands away and folded them together in her lap. Lexa cringed in embarrassment and picked her fork back up. As she glanced up, hoping nobody had noticed, she saw Raven's gaze flickering between her and Clarke. Raven frowned and went back to picking apart her meal.  
'Sorry' Clarke whispered. 'You surprised me'  
Lexa nodded in acknowledgement. 'It's ok' she relented. 'I just wanted you to know I'm here for you. Always.'  
Clarke smiled briefly.

'I have to tell you that thing later, it's really important.' She looked as if she was about to continue but Bellamy interrupted.  
'So Clarke, how does it feel to be almost twelve?' He had a childish grin on his face. 'I mean you're kind of the last one, but better late than never right?' Everyone laughed at his comment. It was true, Clarke was the youngest out of all of them. Lexa smiled. Even though Clarke was the youngest she took on the role of the mother figure within their group, looking after them all and bossing them around, which was her quiet demeanour was unusual and worrying.  
Clarke laughed and said 'I guess so, I mean it won't be much different from being eleven.' Typical Clarke answer Lexa thought as everyone groaned thinking essentially the same thing as her.

Bellamy was about to continue however he was cut off by a huge crash. The double doors to the cafeteria were blown open and six guards in black armour stormed in with guns. Some people screamed and jumped to hide under the tables. Lexa panicked. The guards were striding across the cafeteria, straight in the direction of her table. She glanced to her side and saw Clarke frozen.  
'Clarke.' Lexa waved her hand. 'Clarke you need to move.' The guards looked menacing and they each had an orange band tied tight around their upper arm. That wasn't part of the offical guard uniform.  
A man, who Lexa recognised to be from the agricultural section stepped forwards and said 'why are you here, what do you want?' One of the guards raised his gun and knocked the man to the floor. The whole room gasped and silence filled the room.  
The same guard who knocked the man to the ground announced 'we are here for Clarke Griffin, give us Clarke Griffin and no one will be harmed'  
Lexa heard a whining sound come from Clarke and she turned to face her. Clarke had tears streaming down her face. 'Lexa, help me please. Don't let them take me.'

The guard noticed their exchange and began to walk towards them. 'Are you Clarke?' he called out. The rest of the guards followed. Two men stood up from the table next to Lexa and one of them said 'What do you want with Jake griffin's daughter, she ain't done you no wrong' The two men were blocking the path to Clarke and the guards were almost upon them.  
'Move' the guard commanded.  
'Not until you tell us what you want with her' the man stood strong.  
Clarke was still whimpering so Lexa shifted, her body blocking Clarke's, so that she was protected. They'd have to go through her first Lexa thought determinately.

The guard raised his gun. 'I'm giving you till the count of three to get out of my way. One, two.' As the countdown began Lexa panicked. Why did they want Clarke so bad? Why was nobody stopping these clearly rogue guards?  
'Three.' An ear-splitting bang rang across the canteen, echoing off every surface making it sound like hundreds of gunshots. People screamed out. Children were crying and Lexa turned to her friends to see Lincoln with his arms wrapped around Octavia with a fierce expression on his face. She saw Anya, her face white as a ghost. Lexa's gaze travelled to the man who had been shot and saw the bullet wound and the red seeping into his clean blue shirt. His face frozen in a shocked expression. The man next to him cried out. 'That was my brother you asshole.' He stood up and lunged forwards and the same guard raised his gun and aimed.

Boom. His body slumped to the floor with a loud thud. At this point the children were screaming and even some adults had tears streaming down their faces. Then there was chaos. Everyone started shouting and some people even stood up. The guards raised their guns and fired multiple shots into the air.

'Stop' a voice from the canteen doors commanded. It was Abby Griffin. Lexa panicked, Abby couldn't get shot as well. The guards all turned and lowered their guns. Lexa froze. Why were they following Abby's orders?  
She gulped and called out 'Dr Griffin, what going on here?' Abby ignored her and began swiftly walking down the aisle, towards Lexa's table. The guards parted to let her through. As Abby saw the bodies on the floor Lexa expected her to be upset but instead she stepped right over them as if they didn't even exist. She stopped right in front of Lexa and spoke softly. 'Let go of my daughter' Lexa could feel Clarke trembling in her arms behind her. 'She's done nothing wrong, leave her alone' Lexa set her jaw and planted her feet. She didn't care if this was Clarke's mother. Something wasn't right and Clarke was terrified. Lexa wasn't letting her go.

Abby signalled to the guards and they all stepped forwards. 'Lexa.' Abby whispered 'Don't make this more difficult than it has to be. You're a lovely girl, I don't want to have to make this physical. Let go of Clarke because if you don't we're going to have problems.'  
Lexa set her jaw. 'No'

Abby's eyes flashed dangerously for just a second then her expression went blank. 'Take her by force' she shouted.  
Lexa gripped Clarke tighter as Clarke clung to her and sobbed 'don't let them take me, don't let them take me'  
A guard lunged forwards and before Lexa could react he stabbed a syringe into her neck. She felt a burning at the point of entry and that's where it all started to go wrong. Lexa felt herself lose control of her muscles and her grip on Clarke became slack. Her eyesight started to become blurred. She looked around and saw people rioting, throwing chairs and climbing over tables in a bid to escape. She saw Raven and Bellamy rushing towards her as her legs started to become weak. She felt them collapse beneath her and as she fell she lost her grip on Clarke completely.

'Clarke' Lexa howled. All she could hear was shouting and then suddenly she felt a pair of strong hands grip her arms and pull her up, she flopped on the person for support, feeling a thick pony tail flick her in the face. She caught a whiff of the familiar smell of vanilla that lead her to believe the person was Raven. 'Lex' the person was shouting. Lexa was now blind. She couldn't see a thing. It was like she was in total darkness. The scent of vanilla was now gone and so was the set of strong hands. It was like all her senses had been muted. Apart from her hearing. She could still hear Clarke screaming her name. And then suddenly, even that faded into nothing.

Clarke's POV

Clarke would have laughed out loud if she hadn't have been in the situations she was in. She was strapped to a gurney. Restraints round her wrists, ankles and even one wrapped round her stomach. Clarke felt groggy as if she had just woken from a deep sleep, and in light of recent evens Clarke wouldn't put it past her. As she struggled to recall how she got there, fragments of broken memory came back to her. She was in the canteen, two men were shot. They were her dad's old work colleagues. And Lexa. Defending her. Protecting her and holding her in her arms. Her arms had felt so safe. Where was Lexa now Clarke wondered? Then she remembered Lexa having a syringe implanted into her neck. 'Lexa' Clarke cried out. A rush of hysteria was threatening to overcome Clarke so she took a deep breath and called out again. 'Lexa'

'I see you're awake then.' a soft voice called out from behind Clarke. Clarke recognised that voice.  
'Mum' she whispered 'What's going on? Where's Lexa' Clarke heard a rustling and suddenly her mother came into view. She was holding a syringe filled with what looked like mercury. A silver, glistening liquid that was deadly even in small doses.  
Abby gave a strained smile. She leant over Clark, syringe in hand.  
'Stop, stop. Please stop.' Clarke began to thrash but it was useless. The restraints prevented her from moving. She felt a tiny prick in her neck. Clarke expected a burning sensation, however as she felt the liquid enter her bloodstream, she felt a calmness overcome her. Clarke relaxed as a soothing rush flooded her body.

Clarke looked up at her mother to see her smiling victoriously. Clarke wondered if she had got it all wrong, but that didn't explain all the guards and the feeling of dread she'd been feeling these past few days.

All of a sudden there was a banging on the door. A voice Clarke recognised to be Jaha's shouted out 'Abby you open this door right now. This is illegal, you'll be banished do you realise that. How dare you go against my orders'

'Mum in don't understand, why am I here? Where's Jackson?' Clarke's words were slurred and it was an effort to accentuate the words correctly.  
Abby glanced towards the door, not seeming to care that whoever was on the other side was clearly trying to break it down. Abby turned to Clarke and whispered 'Happy birthday Clarke, see you on the other side.'

Clarke froze. Her mother smiled. Something inside Clarke snapped. She let out an ear piercing scream that tore through her body. People on the other side of the military base probably heard it. Clarke felt like she was being ripped in two. Her skull cracking in half as if being cleaved apart by a deadly blade. A burning sensation consumed her, igniting every part of her body. She continued to scream as that was the only sound she could form as her bones felt like they were being broken hundreds of times over. Her skin was scorching hot, like she was submerged in pure lava, her flesh sizzling and blistering on her bones. She felt every beat of her heart like it was trying to rip itself out from the inside. Cracking the ribcage and piercing the lungs in its desperation to be free. She couldn't see. She couldn't hear. She couldn't think. It was all over.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Hi everyone, this is a really heavy, information filled chapter. I hope it's not too boring but I feel that I need to set the story well enough for you to be able to understand what is going on. Again I apologise for my grammar that is probably all wrong and also the sciency' stuff, that probably makes no sense at all. I didn't mean for the chapter to end here but I am aware of how long my chapters actually are – almost 5000 words each time! I don't know whether to make them shorter..? Anyway, enjoy x** _

 

* * *

 

**3 year time jump, Lexa's POV**

**09:00**

'Are you going to get up now or do I have to drag you out of bed?'

Lexa groaned and rolled over, away from the annoying voice demanding that she leave the safe, warm confines of her bed.

'Lexa I swear to god if you don't get up now there's going to be trouble.' The voice was moving closer and it sounded extremely frustrated.

'Anya. Stop please.' Lexa cried out. 'Just five more minutes.'

Anya and Lexa were roommates in the secluded Section 18. This was where most of the teenagers lived. Once people in The Pagon, the name of the underground military base Lexa and her friends lived in, reached the age of twelve they were required to move out of their old compartment, shared with their family, and into a new room in Section 18.

According to the Council it was to promote independence. You shared the room with a randomly selected roommate and Anya was the lucky individual chosen to share with Lexa. They were both fifteen, however Anya was clearly the mature one out of the both of them.

A quiet knocking was heard at the door and a boy's voice shouted 'Lexa, Anya. The presentation starts in ten minutes. We have to leave now!' Anya rolled her eyes and shouted back, 'She's not even out of bed yet, give us a second Bell.'

There was a brief silence and then the clicking of a lock could be heard and the door swung open. A smiling Bellamy stood on the other side surrounded by Octavia, Lincoln and Raven. As soon as Raven saw Anya she shifted to stand behind Lincoln. His huge, hulking frame dwarfed hers and she was practically hidden from view. Octavia stifled a laugh at the sight and proceeded to enter the compartment.

'Lexa get up we're not being late again because of you.' Octavia strode forward and grabbed Lexa's protruding arm and yanked her out of bed. Lexa howled as she practically collapsed on the floor due to her legs still being half asleep. Octavia just rolled her eyes at Lexa's antics and offered her a hand to help her up. Lexa accepted the extended limb and stood, stretching high and then turned to face her friends.

Lexa had changed drastically in the past three years. Despite only being fifteen, she was stunning. Everybody could see it. It was something about the way she held herself, poised and elegant, with her thick, glistening chocolate coloured hair that tumbled down her back in natural curls. She was tall, her legs long and toned to perfection. Her jawline and cheekbones prominent and defined. However, her eyes were a different story.

Once clear and filled with the desire to learn, they were now clouded and dull. The sparkle gone. Everybody knew why.

Ever since the loss of Clarke, Lexa had blamed herself. No matter what anybody said to her, Lexa felt as if it was her fault. Clarke had trusted her, called out her name, asking her to help, yet Lexa couldn't do anything due to the blackout serum surging through her veins.

'I'll get ready now, give me two minutes.'

Everyone watched as she left the main room and entered into a small, adjoining side room.

All was quiet apart from the faint slam of drawers in the adjoining room, echoing throughout the small space whilst everyone waited. The whole compartment was clean and orderly with a clear colour theme of blue and white. Lexa was very OCD by nature, she liked everything to be perfect and in order, and cared especially about hygiene and cleanliness. Anya didn't mind, as it meant she didn't have to do any cleaning.

Lexa remerged a few minutes later looking neat and polished, dressed in a chequered blouse and a short navy skater skirt that showed off her long, enviable pins. The skirt was slightly tattered along the edges, fraying slightly due to the many times she had worn it.

'Let's go.' Lexa started towards the door, glancing back at her group of friends. 'We're going to be late.'

'That girl is unbelievable.' Raven sighed as she followed Lexa out of the compartment and into the hallway.

Bellamy stood up and gestured to the rest of his friends to follow Raven. Once all of them were outside and in the corridor, he slammed the heavy door shut behind him with a clang.

 

* * *

 

They all arrived in the common room with just seconds to spare, rushing to their assigned seats and sliding into them just as Marcus Kane the Chancellor took his place on stage, behind the podium.

Lexa glanced to her left to see Raven sat just a few seats down. Raven glanced up, feeling a pair of observant green eyes resting on her. As soon as she realised it was Lexa, she sent her a reassuring smile. Lexa tried to smile back yet it came out as more of a grimace. Announcements like this were never good.

As Lexa looked round she realised approximately half of the Section 18 residents were present, which was around about thirty teenagers, most of them either looking really confused or just completely bored. A notion of dread began to flood Lexa's mind as she wondered why they were there.

'I'm just going to jump straight to it. And just so you know, this information is strictly classified and anyone heard repeating what is mentioned here today will be exiled, along with anybody they have told.' Kane cleared his throat.

'There have been rumours circulating recently about problems in The Pagon. Lack of food, a decrease in the water supplies, a shortage of oxygen. Now, I'm here to tell you these are all true.'

Lexa heard multiple gasps echo round the tightly packed hall, followed by heated whispers of phrases like, 'I told you so.' And, 'What are we going to do?' She turned to Raven who just sat there with a blank look on her face.

It was true. Lexa had heard many rumours during her year's underground that had worried her but she had just brushed them aside and continued living her life. When Lexa actually thought about it, recently their portion sizes had decreased and the water had gone up in price. However she had just assumed it was all normal. That maybe at fifteen they lowered your daily calorie intake because you no longer needed as much as when you were growing and a child. She was clearly wrong.

'Silence.' Kane called. 'As bad as this sounds we have a plan. Our scientists have calculated that there are approximately three years left of resources if we begin to ration them now. Three years may sound like a long time but believe me it will go by in a flash. This is why you are all here. You have the chance to become a part of something wonderful. To save our civilisation and become heroes amongst our people.'

Nobody spoke. They were all still processing the information. Lexa raised her hand.

Kane noticed and nodded for Lexa to speak. 'Mr Chancellor, I don't understand where we come in.'

'Miss Woods is it?' Kane questioned. Lexa nodded in acknowledgement. 'I was just about to explain if you had just let me continue.' His gaze lingered for a moment and a frown flashed across his features. He proceeded to scribble something down on a crumpled piece of paper in front of him.

'As I was saying, we, the Council and I, have decided action must be taken. We are running a few months behind due to a set back a few years ago. Our head doctor at the time, Abby Griffin, committed treason and was exiled because of it.'

Lexa remembered the day of Abby's exile. Abby had been locked up since the day of Clarke's disappearance and Lexa suspected she had something to do with Clarke no longer being around.

It was a very public event, the Council wanting to make a display of power, which in turn would bring obedience from some members of the population that were growing restless and threatening to cause trouble. Abby had been silent throughout. Treason was listed however it just didn't add up.

Lexa remembered the long walk through the exit corridor. She remembered the whispers, the theories about what Abby Griffin had actually done as the explanation given, treason, wasn't actually explained. How had she disobeyed the council, had she tried to kill Kane? Lexa had doubted that, as she had a sneaking suspicion it was something else.

She remembered seeing the huge, impenetrable steel door with the easily recognisable sign saying, Danger, radiation. On the other side of the door was a long corridor that lead to a set of about two hundred steps that, once you reached the top, brought you to another steel door. On the other side of that door was the surface. Lexa only knew about all this from her advanced mechanics class.

A tall man in a hazmat suit had taken Abby by the arm and marched her through the first steel door, sealing it shut behind him. Everyone knew what happened after that. The man had returned without Abby, and just before the door was sealed, a faint screaming could be heard. People began to wander away at that point but Lexa had stayed until the guard pulled her away.

'She was head of the whole programme and after her betrayal we had to start afresh. Now we are ready. It has taken the last few years to perfect a serum that will finally allow us to return to the surface.' He raised his hands as if expecting applause and shouts of approval, however he was met with a very different reaction.

Cries of, 'Are you mad? The surface isn't survivable, it's toxic. The radiation will kill us,' resonated from around the room. There was total uproar. Teenagers leapt from their seats and started shouting all kinds of abuse and obscene language towards the stage.

'What do you think of that then?' Lexa glanced over her shoulder to see Octavia sat in the seat behind her. 'Pretty crazy right!'

Lexa sighed. 'I think this is the start of something very bad and I don't think he's telling us everything, I don't think he's telling the truth.'

'I completely agree.' Raven appeared next to her. 'How does he plan to do this? Why us, why not the adults?'

Kane signalled the guards standing by the doors. They began to walk forwards, their guns swinging by their sides. 'Everybody take a seat right now.' Kane shouted above the complete chaos present in the room.

There were a few more outraged cries and then the ringing of a gunshot made everyone cover their ears and cower due to the close proximity of the gun. As Lexa raised her head slightly she realised that the guard had just fired his gun into the air to make everyone settle down. Nobody had been shot.

Everybody was mute and in shock. Kane saw this and continued. 'Please, everybody just take a seat. Anywhere, it doesn't matter. I understand this is probably hugely confusing for you all and that you probably have hundreds of questions you want the answers to, right now in this very moment. I ask of you that you just sit still for a few minutes and let me explain everything, or at least what I understand myself. For the last decade or so we have been aware of declining resources, yet haven't been able to do anything about it. Three years ago we had a huge breakthrough. Abby Griffin as I mentioned before, came close to perfecting, what she named the Astra Serum. It supposedly injected particles into the subject's body that would absorb and dissolve any form of radiation. It was trialled on mice and had a 100% success rate. Even though the serum was a supposed success, we were wary of how it would react with the human body. The Council voted to do more trials and make sure it was safe for human use but Dr. Griffin saw the potential and before it was made legal, she stole the test serum from where is was locked away and she…' Kane trailed off, a look of indecisiveness crossing his features.

He continued, 'To this day we don't know what she did with it and we will probably never know.' He looked nervous, sweat beginning to bead on his forehead.

Raven nudged Lexa. A frown was cemented on her face. 'That sounded a bit off don't you think?' Lexa nodded in agreement. 'He looked like he was about to say something else. I wonder what stopped him.'

Octavia shushed them both as Kane began to speak again. 'So back to what this has to do with you, and I want silence please. We need to get back to the surface. In three years' time we could all be dead of starvation, dehydration or oxygen deprivation. All three are equally lethal. And that's only the beginning. We need twenty young, able bodied volunteers to become a part of what we have named the Astra Guard. A group of individuals who can return to the surface and help us to survive and stay alive down here till we are able to live on the surface ourselves.

Raven shook her head and murmured, 'That doesn't make any sense.' She stood up and said, 'Mr Chancellor, how will that help in terms of oxygen levels? We can't bring it back to you, it's just not practical. And how do you expect us to survive out there with no training? We don't even know if it's safe for us to just be running round out there. With all due respect Mr. Chancellor, the world may have changed beyond recognition.'

'Miss Reyes, as always, your brilliant mind is one step ahead.' Kane smiled. 'Currently we only have enough serum to allow twenty individuals to survive on the surface. We hope that you'll be able to bring us supplies that will enable us to make more of the mixture and then we can distribute it out to the other residents, section by section till everybody can live on the surface without feeling the effects of the radiation. We have chosen the thirty of you in this room because we believe you all have something special. We can't just inject any random person with the serum. We need a decent chance of survival. And in terms of training, you will have a year to get fit and prepare for the surface. It won't be easy but we have some of our best people ready to train with you and teach you all we know about the ground. Any other questions?'

Lexa's head was spinning. There was so much to think about. Before she was even able to sift through all the information she had heard, a boy she vaguely knew from her Earth History class, Monty Green began to speak. 'Sir, I work in the agricultural section and I have been aware of the decline in our food levels. Why are there thirty of us here if there's only enough serum for twenty? What if none of us even want to volunteer.' There was a slight intake of breath that could be heard clearly around the room.

'You make a valid point.' Kane admitted. 'Some of you may not want to participate, however I advise you to think very hard about what would happen if you don't. Your family members and friends would die. Innocent children, who won't ever reach their next birthday. And yes there are thirty of you. I am well aware that we don't have enough serum. If you decide that the Astra Programme is for you, this afternoon there will be a series of tests to see if you'll be a suitable candidate or not.

'If you have any more questions they will be answered tonight as this is all the information you need for now.' Kane stepped out from behind the podium and addressed the room. 'Remember what I said about secrecy. We hear all, we see all. Your life isn't worth one small secret getting out. Remember that. Lunch has been prepared early for you all. If you head to the canteen now you will be finished before the lunchtime rush begins. Good day to you all, I expect to see you this afternoon, same place at 18:00 hours.'

Kane stepped down from the stage and strode towards the exit, three guards following in his footsteps. The three remaining guards called out for the teenagers to leave the room and head for the cafeteria.

Lexa turned to Raven, overwhelmed by all the information. Raven took her hand and began to lead her towards the door. Bellamy was heading in their direction with Anya hot on his trail. Lincoln appeared out of nowhere, linking hands with Octavia. This would have been the point where the whole group would have cheered and exchanged high fives. Lincoln finally showing affection towards Octavia in a physical way was a big step. Especially after three years of brief contact and flirty exchanges. But everyone was silent as they filed out of common room and into the hallway leading to the cafeteria. As Lexa shuffled along, her feet feeling heavy, dragging on the floor, she felt Raven's strong, reassuring grip keeping her grounded. Without it she probably would have broken down.

 

* * *

 

13:00

When the six of them finally arrived in the canteen, they grabbed their lunches and all took a seat round a small, circular table in the corner. Everyone seemed to let out a sigh of relief as they dug into their lunch. Still no words were exchanged, all of them deep in thought.

The silence was finally broken, surprisingly by Lincoln, who usually stayed quiet most of the time, listening and observing. 'I think we should volunteer. I mean there's pretty much no other alternative, right?'

Raven made a small noise of disagreement. She swallowed whatever she was chewing and said, 'I'm not sure. They've never tested it on humans. We don't know what it will do to our bodies. We could die.' A hush descended as the weight of Raven's words sank in.

Octavia let out a small, defeated sigh, 'We'll be dead in three years if we don't do anything anyway. We might as well give it a shot.' Lincoln nodded his head in acknowledgement and as everyone realised the truth behind Octavia's short speech, they nodded their heads in agreement.

'So we're in agreement then?' Lexa motioned towards the other people in the room. Do you think they'll volunteer?' Lexa had been planning to volunteer anyway, it's not like she had much keeping her here anyway. There was nothing for her underground. Maybe this could be her way of actually achieving something with her life, and if it failed… Well then she'd be with Clarke and she could finally be happy.

'I think they'll come to the same conclusion as us.' Bellamy said as he reached out to grab Octavia's apple off her tray. The apple was small and deformed. Reinforcing Kane's point about food production becoming a problem to worry about. Octavia didn't even notice as she was too busy staring into her lap, where her and Lincoln's hands lay intertwined.

'I have to go.' Raven said as she stood up, grabbing her tray. 'I have a meeting with the head mechanic. Lexa I'm pretty sure you're meant to be there as well. We have to go now if we're going to get there in time. It's on the other side of the base.'

Lexa glanced at Anya, who smiled at her and said, 'I'll see you later, 18:00. Everything will be ok I promise.'

Raven reached for Lexa's arm and pulled her up. 'We'll see you guys later, don't be late tonight. I'll keep an eye on this one.' She motioned towards Lexa, who still looked dazed and out of it.

Bellamy nodded, 'See you tonight Reyes.'

 

* * *

 

18:00

Bellamy arrived just in time. Running round the corner, red and out of breath, rushing as usual. 'I'm here, I'm here.' He shouted out. He leant down, breathing in and out.

'Thank you for that announcement Mr. Blake. However I must remind you that running is prohibited and if it wasn't for the current situation you would have been punished. Please take a handout from that table.' Kane pointed to a table with a few booklets spread on top of it.

Lexa wondered what had made Bellamy almost late. Punctuality in the Pagon was essential and even if you were a few seconds late it was punishable. Bellamy took a booklet and looked up to see Lexa watching him. He stuck his tongue out at Lexa in an attempt to lighten the mood. When Lexa didn't reciprocate his expression, he mouthed, 'Are you ok? What have I missed?' Lexa just motioned for Bellamy to pay attention.

'As I was saying before Mr. Blake rudely interrupted, this is the first stage of testing. It's just a few simple questions and after you complete that stage we will move on. I just want to say before this all begins, how proud I am. Twenty four candidates is considered a huge success and I want you to remember that one day you'll be hailed as heroes by our people. What you are doing here today is courageous and highly commendable. Thank you for making this possible. Now if you'll all follow me and sit in your assigned seat. It's alphabetical order.'

Lexa waited to the end. When the seating was alphabetical she was usually towards the back due to her last name being Woods. As she took her seat, Kane called out for the test to begin.

As Lexa read the first question she shook her head at the obviousness of it. You have arrived on the surface, unprepared and without supplies when you see a table with a few items placed on top of it. Would you choose the… A tick box section followed. A spear, a medical Kit, a rucksack with unknown contents or a small bag of green pills. Lexa frowned, she would probably pick the spear. She put a small black cross next to answer A, a spear.

The rest of the questions that followed were of a similar kind. They weren't especially difficult, they were just hypothetical situations asking how the candidate would act, what they would say, what they would do. Lexa finished the test quickly, after having scribbled down a couple of detailed answers to some of the more lengthy questions.

As she looked around she realised a few other people had finished, including Octavia, who sat on the first row braiding her hair into intricate little fish braids. Bellamy was sat next to her and he was gnawing on the end of his pencil with a look of deep concentration plastered on his face.

Another fifteen minutes passed or so and it looked like everyone was finished. Kane seemed to notice the lack of scribbling pencils and called, 'Right, I think we're done here. Everyone leave their tests on the desk and wait for a guard to lead you to the next part of the test. One guard per person please.' A few people glanced round in confusion.

A girl Lexa recognised but couldn't remember her name raised her hand. 'Why do we have to go separately? Where are they taking us?'

Kane frowned, 'You'll find out when you get there. Can we hurry this along please?' He motioned to the guards to start taking people out. Since Lexa was sat closest to the exit, one of the guards came to her first. 'Alright miss if you just follow me now.'

Lexa felt panic begin to set in. She glanced round looking to see if other people were following their guards. Lexa's guard stepped forwards and gently grasped her arm in his huge hand, pulling her out of the door. 'Don't worry miss, nobody ain't going to hurt you when I'm here.' Lexa remembered him from when she had moved into her compartment with Anya, he had helped her move all her stuff and he had sat with her whilst she cried. She had been really homesick, away from her family.

'Gustus right.' Lexa asked. 'Do you know where we're going?' He nodded and smiled. 'That's me yes. Just to Section 6A, miss. It's just the last part of the test.' Lexa bowed her head in recognition. Section 6A was part of the hospital, it was basically just the recovery rooms for patients who weren't ready to be on the main ward.

They continued walking in silence till Lexa asked, 'Do you know what they're going to do to us?' Gustus faltered. 'I know parts' he admitted, 'but it's classified.'

Lexa glared at him. 'We volunteered for this so nothing should be kept from us. We have a right to know.'

Gustus nodded his head in acknowledgement. 'From what I've heard miss, they're going to put you to sleep. You'll be in some kind of dream state. I don't know much more.'

Lexa smiled and thanked him. They had just arrived at Section 6A and Lexa could heard from behind them the loud voices of the rest of the 24 catching up to them. Once everyone had arrived Kane stepped forwards with a woman in a blue doctor's robe. He cleared his throat and everyone turned to face him.

'This is the final part of testing. You may have been lead to believe there would be more than just two stages, however we feel that this part of the trials will show exactly who is right for this programme. It takes a certain type of individual to overcome the next challenge we have prepared for you. You will be split into pairs. They are completely random and will have no effect on your results. Once I call your name you must enter your assigned room immediately. Please listen up. In room 1.'

Kane read out a list of names including Raven's. She was paired with a boy named Jasper Jordan.

'In room 8, Alexandria Woods and Costia Pierce. Lexa recognised the name. Costia lived just down the hall from her in Section 18. They exchanged smiles and said hello on occasion.

They both worked in separate sectors, so didn't interact much, however Lexa was drawn to Costia and she didn't know why. Well maybe she did. It might be because every time they did interact, Lexa felt a warmth flow through her that made her slightly dizzy. Costia was addicting. Lexa realised that from the moment she first saw her. Her personality and general persona was just infectious. Her long, thick, shiny brunette hair that reached her waist accentuated her ice blue eyes perfectly. The eyes that seemed to penetrate Lexa's soul every time she was caught staring. Lexa shook herself out of her daydream. She couldn't allow herself to think like this. It wouldn't be right.

As Costia realised she recognised who she was paired with, a gentle smile spread across her face. One that lit up her eyes making them luminous and glowing. They entered into the room and Lexa's eyes widened. There were two small beds with steel frames. Next to the bed were two machines, emitting loud beeping noises, attached to what seemed like hundreds of wires. Wires that trailed across the floor and became tangled amongst themselves. There was a female doctor stood in between the two beds. She motioned towards them. 'Lie down please.'

Costia went and lay down the left bed, so Lexa followed her lead and lay on the right bed. As soon as Lexa lay down the doctor inserted an IV into her arm and proceeded to do the same to Costia. The bed was too short for Lexa's long frame and the thin mattress made it hard and uncomfortable. A guard Lexa didn't recognise appeared at the door and pulled on the handle to seal it shut. His fist hit the small glass window at the top, yet no sound was heard. The guard gave the thumbs up sign and disappeared. The room is soundproof Lexa realised. Why would they bother soundproofing the room, what don't they want us to hear?

The doctor addressed them both. 'In one minute, a blackout serum laced with a hallucination powder will enter your system. You may feel a painful tingling sensation but that will disappear as you become unconscious. When you wake up you'll be told if you are one of the chosen candidates for the Astra Programme. Good luck.'

As soon as she finished speaking Lexa noticed her vision going black round the edges and she turned her head to face Costia's bed. To her surprise Costia was already looking at her. She smiled sweetly and whispered something Lexa couldn't quite make out. Then the room faded into darkness.

 

* * *

 

**_ So what does everyone think? It's a bit of a mess and all over the place. I apologise for that, but I have loads of stuff planned for the next chapter which I have already started writing. _ **

**_ What did everyone think of S3E!?? I thought it was amazing and I'm still in shock!  _ **

**_ I hope you like it anyway. Feel free to review and tell me what to improve or what you like about it so far. _ **


	3. Chapter 3

 

* * *

I hope everyone enjoys the chapter!

* * *

 

Lexa's POV

Lexa's eyes opened to a blur of bright colours flashing across her vision. She felt sick. They seemed to rush at her, filling her vision with images that disappeared so quick she could hardly comprehend their meaning. Lexa took a deep breath in an attempt to steady herself and as she did so the colours began to fade and her eyesight became clear. As she glanced around she saw what looked like a forest. She could only presume because she had only ever seen them in pictures, never in real life. Tall oak trunks towered above her, creating shadows that flickered gracefully in and out of sight. Their branches were long and lean, extending, as if they were reaching to embrace one another.

The colours were mesmerising. Emerald green grass blanketing the floor like a carpet and elegant jade vines hung suspended, with some dangling down and others in tight ringlet curls, high above Lexa's head. The ground was even more beautiful than she imagined.

As she twirled with her arms out, taking in the view she noticed a small steel bunker concealed within the trees. It looked out of place and weather beaten. Lexa didn't recognise it, but then again she had no reason to. Lexa slowly began walking towards the odd structure, taking small, tentative steps in case there was any hidden danger.

From a distance, although the bunker looked old and showed some signs of damage it didn't prepare Lexa for what she saw when she saw it up close. Gouged deep into the steel panelling holding the shelter together were hundreds, if not thousands of incomprehensible indentations. They ranged from single letters to what looked like whole sentences. Lexa didn't understand the strange language but as she leant closer to get a better view she noticed a beautifully carved mark. Whilst the other marks all looked deep and jagged, as if they had been created in a time of anger and distress, this one looked as if someone had taken their time. And it was in English.

'You could have saved me.' Lexa jerked back. A feeling of panic began to set in. The once enticing forest had now turned into a dark, forbidding maze of tangled shrubbery. The trees no longer swaying in the breeze. They were perfectly still and the only sound that could be heard was the deep, unsteady breathing coming from Lexa herself.

Another deep breath and Lexa leant forward to get a proper look at the writing. As she reached towards it, ghosting her fingers over the shallow indentations, a rush of realisation threatened to overcome her. The small curling inscription was familiar. She had seen it before. In the Pagon they didn't get an opportunity to write much due to the lack of resources, however Lexa had definitely seen that style of handwriting before.

A rush of escaping air drew Lexa from deep out of her memories. She span round and saw a cloud of white smoke escaping from an open airlock door, just to the left of where she stood. Lexa hadn't noticed the door before as she was engrossed in trying to understand the mysterious symbols and letters on the walls.

'Airlock open.' A blank, plain voice, devoid of emotion echoed across the small clearing Lexa was standing in.

Lexa leapt into a fighting stance expecting something or someone to jump out and attack her, however after a few minutes of silence, Lexa realised nobody was coming. It made her realise she was totally alone. As this sank in, Lexa tried to remember how she even got to the surface. And never mind that, but how she was even still alive. Why hadn't the radiation killed her? As these thoughts entered her mind a sharp pain erupted in her skull. Lexa grabbed her head and curled up into a ball.

Out of nowhere a voice cried out. It was coming from deep inside the bunker. The same noise cried out again, a wild feral scream. It sounded as if the person had lost all that made them human and instead of shouting out words, they just cried out in fractured exclamations. Lexa hesitated for a second. She could either stay curled up on the floor or go and find the source of evident pain and distress.

It was a no brainer really. The screams still cut through the air like shards of glass, but they seemed weaker. All the fight was gone. Now they were just screaming because they had nothing left.

The entrance to the bunker was wide open. A gaping hole, with a set of creaky, wooden descending down into the darkness. The unknown.

Lexa edged through the doorway and began to walk slowly down the steps. One at a time, pausing every few seconds in case it was all a trap. Lexa reached the bottom quicker than she imagined, her feet hitting a hard, gleaming white surface that was the exact opposite of the steps she had just walked down. A long, empty corridor extended as far as the eye could see. The walls were exactly the same as the floor. Plain and empty. The whole place had a sterile, hospital feel about it and the screams that had now turned into loud moans were the only sound to be heard.

Lexa realised she was running out of time. She began to jog down the corridor and after a few seconds she came to a door. It was a solid slab of metal, no handle could be seen and the numbers 309-RR in block capitals printed onto the surface. Lexa, using her shoulder, slammed the door, expecting resistance. However the door swung open so easily that she fell through and collapsed in a heap on the floor. As Lexa leapt to her feet she felt a shudder rip through her body at the sight before her eyes.

Raven was tied to a slab of stone in the centre of the room. Her wrists and ankles were red with blood due to the metal shackles holding her down. Raven was unmoving. The moans could still be heard. Lexa felt her eyes filling with tears. Why was she here? Where was everyone else? What happened to Raven? Again a sharp pain tore through Lexa's mind, but this time Lexa stayed standing, leaning on the wall for support. As the pain dissipated Lexa crept towards Raven's immobile body. Stretching out her hand, she felt for Raven's pulse. There was nothing.

Lexa turned and ran. This had to be some sort of nightmare. She continued down the corridor, sprinting away from her friend's inanimate corpse. Tears welling in her eyes, threatening to spill over. Another doorframe appeared but this time the door was open. Lexa braced herself for what was on the other side.

Anya was lying flat on a similar stone slab to Raven. She was also motionless. However unlike Raven, who only had blood where her shackles had clearly rubbed, Anya was covered in it. It was all over the faded hospital gown she wore. The grey stone she lay on had streaks of dried blood painted down the side. The blood didn't even look that old. Lexa collapsed next to Anya's body and the tears began to fall. Anya had a long messy slash from the middle of her collarbones down to her lower abdominal muscles. On her arms there were various lacerations, crisscrossing and intertwining. Lexa didn't even want to see what damage had been done underneath the gown. As she stood to get up she heard a howling screech coming from the hallway. It sounded closer now. More desperate, as if they knew it was going to end soon.

Lexa kissed Anya's forehead and whispered, 'Yu gonplei ste odon.' As she was leaving the room Lexa noticed the inscription on Anya's door. 310-AR. AR…. They were Anya's initials. Anya Richards. And RR from before was Raven Reyes. Lexa felt her stomach twist. Is this where all her friends were? Why hadn't she been taken? She didn't know how many more of her friends she could see like this.

As she entered into the corridor, Lexa saw a door just a few steps further down and she felt a sinking in her stomach. Approaching the door cautiously she saw the number, 311-OB. Octavia. Lexa knew what was behind the door. She turned away and began to run. She hated leaving them all and she almost tripped as she ran past the next door. Blood was smeared across it. It looked like whoever was in there had put up a fight. 312-LT. Lincoln. She didn't stop. 313-CP. Costia. She couldn't help any of them. Next was 314-BB. Bellamy. His door was slightly ajar and the nauseous smell of coppery blood filled the air. This had to be a dream. Lexa hoped it was a dream.

The end of the corridor was in sight so Lexa began to sprint. The moans of pain were loud and they echoed thought the hall. Lexa was close. There was practically no lighting down here, the only illumination provided was the dim lighting of the occasional bulb. That's why Lexa didn't see the blood on the ground. That's how she slipped and fell to the floor. As she felt herself falling, Lexa cried out.

The moans stopped. Lexa began to cry as she realised she was lying in a puddle of blood. It covered her and it was still fresh.

Lexa's head whipped up as she heard a faint voice whisper, 'Lexa, help me, please. Help me.' It was coming from the very last door, right at the end. Lexa knew. She knew exactly who would be behind that door. It was only fitting for this horrible nightmare to end with the one person she couldn't ever get out of her head. Her feet began to move of their own accord, dragging unwillingly across the ground. The door was closed and instead of a number and initials on the door, it just said, 'Wanheda.' The commander of death. Lexa inhaled deeply.

From behind the door she heard someone whispering her name, 'Lexa' over and over again until there was a whimper and then what sounded like someone choking. And then it all went silent. Lexa's hand trembled as she pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Lexa began to sway as soon as the rancid smell of blood entered her nostrils. It was everywhere. It blanketed her senses, making her eyes go black and she almost fell. Standing tall she wrenched her eyes open and gasped. On the bed lay Clarke. It had been so long. Her once angelic, blonde hair coloured red, tainted from all the blood. Her eyes were closed, the tranquil, sky blue orbs hidden from sight. She looked so different from when Lexa had last seen her, when she was dragged away by the guards all those years ago. She looked damaged and broken. A long wa y from the happy little girl that Lexa used to know.

Stood next to her bed was a figure. Their face was concealed by the huge helmet of a hazmat suit. In a large gloved hand a large, bloodstained knife lay. It had a serrated blade and as Lexa glanced looked at Clarke she saw the rips and tears, inlayed into her pale, fragile skin. Aside from the cuts there were two tubes coming from her body, one filled with a dark red substance that Lexa suspected was blood and the other filled with suspicious neon orange liquid. The two tubes hung from the ceiling, one end impaled deep into Clarke and the other disappearing into two small holes, out of sight.

Lexa, still staring at the body of her best friend almost missed the triumphant exclamation of, 'It's done.' Lexa turned and let out a roar of pain. However it wasn't physical pain Lexa was feeling, it was mental. She felt her control snap and all the pain she had bottled up after the loss of Clarke quickly consumed her.

'What did you do to her?' Lexa screamed. She lunged towards the person in the suit but was knocked back by an unknown force. As Lexa prepared to leap again she realised the person was gone. They were nowhere to be found. Lexa howled in anger and raced out to check the hallway. There was nobody there. This was all so confusing. How can someone just disappear? The sudden surge of anger quickly transformed into despair.

Remembering Clarke, lying pale and corpse like on the bed, made Lexa run back into the room. Her sobs were choking her, tears obscuring her vision. Once in the room, Lexa collapsed on top of Clarke's petite figure. Feeling for a pulse, Lexa's heart cracked. There was nothing.

All of a sudden there was a light tap on her shoulder. Lexa jerked away and threw her fist out in a punch. It met with nothing, just air. Looking up Lexa couldn't believe her eyes. It was Clarke. Her hair blonde again, falling down her back in spiral curls. Eyes shimmering pools of turquoise and a smile wide on her face. Lexa closed her eyes, turned round and inhaled. This wasn't real. Clarke was dead behind her. She was seeing things. Opening her eyes she saw Clarke's body still on the bed. Just as Lexa assured herself she was going crazy, the smiling Clarke as Lexa decided to call her, appeared next to the her.

'You didn't save me.' She whispered. The smile still stretched across her face. 'I begged you to save me, but you were too late.' Lexa began to hyperventilate. 'I tried.' Tears began to stream down her face. 'I did everything I could. You have no idea how much I beat myself up about it, how much I've missed you.'

'It didn't have to be like this. You could have saved me.' The blonde smirked. 'But you took too long, you let the guards take me. Look what they did to me. Look what they did to us.' She gestured to Lexa's quivering from. They've broken you.'

Clarke paused as if a thought had entered her head. 'Why did you leave me? I thought you loved me. All that time we spent together, did I mean nothing to you?

Lexa choked. She had known all this time? Lexa herself didn't even know at the time of Clarke's disappearance that she loved her. After months of pining for the girl and isolating herself from society she realised what she felt for Clarke wasn't just a friendship. That just made the blonde's absence even harder for Lexa to cope with. Once she came to terms with her feelings, Lexa was able to move on to some degree and even then only because of the support she received from her friends. This was clearly a dream. Clarke was dead. She had been for years. Lexa needed to wake up.

'You're not real.' Lexa jutted her jaw defiantly. 'You died years ago. I saw them take you and I tried… I tried so hard to find you but I knew deep down you were gone. This is just some sick joke to get a reaction out of me. I'm done.'

Clarke drifted forwards and whispered softly into Lexa's ear. 'You say you're done, my suffering may have ended, but yours is only beginning.'

'Stop.' Lexa snarled. 'What have I done to deserve this? Get out of my head.' She began to feel the room spinning and her head felt like it was about to explode. Her heartrate sped up, beating so quickly it felt like it was trying to leap out of her chest and then Lexa saw a flash of bright white light and she tore her eyes open.

 

* * *

 

Costia's POV

Costia had woken up in a cold sweat. Her bedsheets drenched. She slowly sat up and gripped the railings to keep herself steady. Everything came flashing back to her. The freezing temperatures. Being trapped in a snowstorm and seeing a figure. Calling out for help and the shape disappearing. She was wrenched out of her thoughts by a high pitched scream coming from the girl lying next to her.

Lexa. Costia's heart skipped a beat as she watched the girl thrash around in her bed, swinging her arms wide and slashing blindly at nothing. Lexa dropped her arms and started moaning. In between moans Costia could make out names. She kept repeating the name Raven and then suddenly shouted Anya. She sounded out of breath like she had been running. Whatever Costia had been through was clearly nothing compared to Lexa. Costia heard a door slam and she turned to see who was entering the room.

It was a guard. Tall and dark haired. He saw she was awake and held out his arm. 'We gotta be somewhere miss.'

'But what about her?' Costia panicked. Why were they leaving Lexa like this? She was clearly in pain. 'Wake her up.' She demanded.

'I'm not authorised to do that miss. We have to go now.'

Costia remembered why she was in the room in the first place. 'Did I pass?'

'With flying colours miss. That's where I'm taking you now. The Astra Facility. But we have to go now.' The guard was clearly adamant that they leave straight away so Costia moved to stand up, taking his outstretched arm as she felt her legs wobble.

As the guard pulled her along Costia took note of the path they took. Finally after being hauled around what seemed like the whole underground base, Costia and her guard arrived in front of an old, out of order elevator.

'Why are we here?' Costia asked. 'It doesn't even work anymore, it broke years ago.' The guard ignore her pulling her into the lift and closing the doors. He pulled a black card out of his pocket and swiped it across a tiny red blinking light. The light turned gold and the whole lift shuddered into life. After a loud clanking and a screech Costia felt the elevator begin to descend. It was a strange feeling she knew she didn't like. It felt like her stomach was dropping down to her feet, leaving her feeling dizzy and swaying.

The elevator began to slow down and finally arrived on what Costia assumed to be the lowest level. The Pagon was a military base built back before the nuclear war. It was built to train an army of soldiers and house and store scientific experiments in the lower levels but they all disappeared when the bombs began to fall. Some of the soldiers and their families survived by sealing the main entrance tight shut and focusing on creating a surviving mini society, hundreds of feet under the ground. Centuries later The Pagon was facing an overpopulation crisis and a lack of resources.

Costia had lived in the base all her life, but she had never been this far down and judging by the key card the guard used, not many other people had either.

The guard swiped the card again, which in turn opened another door that lead into a wide, spacious corridor. The guard took her arm and pulled her along. 'This is the kitchen and the canteen. You will be required to cook your meals and eat all your food here.' The room was big with a small kitchenette in the corner. The guard continued along the corridor, walking past a solid black door with foreign symbols inscribed, stopping about half way and pointing to his left. This is the common room where important announcements will be made and you'll be able to relax when you're not working. He pointed to his right. This is the training room. You will have a schedule issued to you within the next few days, if everything goes smoothly, which tells you when the training room isn't being used. And finally the dorm rooms.'

At the end of the corridor were two doors. On the left a label on the door read 1-8 and the door on the opposite side read 9-16. The guard pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. 'According to this you're Subject 4.' Costia grimaced at the word subject. 'This means you'll be through the door on the left'.' He continued. 'Go ahead, go in. make yourself at home. Not everybody has woken up yet. When they do youll be called to the common room for a meeting. Oh and also the bathroom is just down the hall.' He pointed back the way they had come.

'What about the black door?' Costia asked.

The guard turned and a look of unease crossed his face. 'You'll find out later today.' He began to walk briskly away.

Costia pushed the dorm room door open and was surprised to see three people inside already. Emori and Echo and a girl she didn't recognise. Her name was Monroe maybe? Emori cried out when she saw Costia, pulling her into a strong hug.

'Are you ok?' she questioned. 'It was horrible, the test I mean.' Emori looked panicked.

Costia went and sat on the bed underneath Echo.

'The boy I was with when we were being tested was dead when I woke up.' Emori whispered looking heartbroken. 'They were zipping his body inside a body bag when I sat up. They didn't know I was awake. I mean I knew it was dangerous but I didn't think we'd actually die. Where is everyone else as well? Why aren't they here yet?'

Costia just sighed and shook her head. 'I think were in too deep now to back out.' The girl, Monroe, nodded her head in agreement. 'They better have answers.' She scowled. Costia secretly agreed.

* * *

 

Octavia's POV

As she awoke, Octavia's head felt like it was about to explode. She was deeply shaken by what she had just seen. Somebody gently brushed her shoulder and wrapped their arms around her. She recognised the fresh, outdoorsy smell of her brother Bellamy. Before she could comprehend what was going on a guard crashed into the room.

'You both passed now we have to go. Time is running out.'

Bellamy gave her a reassuring smile and lifted her from the bed. He followed the guard out of the room, his bouncy stride surprising Octavia. She still felt disorientated from the dreamlike state she has been in only minutes ago.

'How long have you been awake Bell?' Octavia turned her head so she could see her brother.

'About half an hour. A guard came for me but I refused to leave until you woke up. I needed to make sure you were safe. My sister, my responsibility… remember.'

Octavia smiled and settled into her brothers comforting, capable arms. He set her down as they reached the end of the corridor and just as they were about to go down the stairs to a lower level a voice called out. 'Stop. Hold the door.'

A guard came running down the hall carrying an unconscious Raven. He arrived on the stairwell and the door slammed shut behind him.

'What have you done to her?' Bellamy cried out, moving so he could get a closer look at Raven.

'Sir.' The guard addressed Bellamy and Octavia's guard. 'She caused a bit of trouble up on floor 12 so I stabilised her and carried her the rest of the way here.'

Octavia guessed stabilised meant knocked out because Raven was currently being supported by the younger guard, unconscious and dead to the world.

'Let's go.' The guard shouted out. 'One more subject and then we're done.'

Octavia wondered who the last person was and why they weren't here already. A sign saying Floor 6 came into view.

'She's on this level, let's make it quick.'

Floor 6 was dimly lit, the few lights that worked flickered occasionally. There was an eerie feel to the whole floor and Octavia shuddered. At least Bellamy had been there when she had awoken. A guard came out of a room to the right. How many guards were there in this compound Octavia wondered? As the door opened a screaming could be heard. It was heart shattering and painful. Octavia flinched and covered her ears.

'That's Lexa.' Bellamy growled. 'What are you doing to our friend?' The screaming was relentless. It was as if somebody was being slowly tortured and as a result were drowning in their own pain.

The guard strode over, looking panicked. 'She's been screaming for hours, I can't even hear myself think. She's not ready. I think she's close but not ready.'

The screams suddenly stopped and the all the guards spun round a look of terror plastered on each of their faces. A whimpering could be heard and then a thud. Lexa's guard began to run towards the open door but before he reached it a figure emerged from the shadows. It was Lexa.

'I tried to save her but she wasn't real.' Before the guard could react Lexa collapsed onto the floor, her head making contact with the ground with a painful sounding crack. Bellamy cried out and attempted to launch himself in the direction of the unconscious Lexa but one of the original guards grabbed him and put him in a choke hold.

'She'll be ok. The longer you're in the dream state the harder it is to adjust back to the real world.'

'How come she took so long?' Bellamy frowned. 'I've been awake hours now.'

'Felix.' The guard called out, motioning to the guard crouching over Lexa. 'Get the girl, we've got 20 minutes.

He turned to Bellamy and placed a hand on his shoulder. 'All I know is that the longer you spend in that place, the deeper your fear is rooted, so therefore the harder it is to overcome. That's why some people haven't made it through the process. Because they succumbed to their fears and let terror consume them. ' Octavia grimaced. This was darker than they all thought.

As she trailed behind her brother instead of heading towards the staircase like she presumed they would, the guards lead them to a rusty elevator at the end of an abandoned corridor. Octavia hadn't really been paying attention to how they got there so she was surprised when her vision darkened as they stepped into the small, dingy elevator. The guard carrying Raven nudged Bellamy and said. 'She's waking up. Hold her steady will you?' Bellamy put his arm around Raven's waist and as she opened her eyes the elevator made a shrill dinging noise. The doors opened and one of the guards drew a small black card from his pocket and swiped it across a flashing red light which turned gold and two doors slid open revealing a spacious corridor.

'Where are we?' Octavia whispered.

 

* * *

 

Lexa's POV

Last thing Lexa remembered was seeing Bellamy and Octavia stood at the end of a small, dark corridor looking at her in shock. Then nothing. Her eyes opened as she felt something pierce into her elbow crease and enter through her skin.

She saw a large room with 20 strange looking machines, lined up in two rows, facing the each other in pairs. They were made from some kind of transparent material because Lexa could see a lining of white rubber matting covering the inside. And the distinctive shape of human bodies trapped inside. About two thirds of them were full and Lexa realised she was next. Now she was being lifted on top of one of the coffin like structures.

She couldn't move, her body was unresponsive but she could still see everything clearly. As she was lifted up she saw the lid to the coffin next to her sliding shut with a quiet click as it closed. However. Lexa could see the body. It was Octavia. She lay still, her eyes sealed tight. Lexa's eyes strained to see who was in the coffin opposite Octavia. It looked like Raven. Dark hair spilling onto the pillow and around her face. The guard lowered her into the machine and as she felt her skin connect with the rubber matting, little tentacle shaped feelers erupted out of the mat and connected with her skin. All of a sudden she was on fire and then her eyes began to close.

Once everything was black, Lexa felt a buzzing in her skull. As if she were having a dream Marcus Kane appeared in her head.

He began to speak. 'This is it. What all the tests have been leading up to. You have been selected for the Astra Programme, an elite unit of super soldiers created to ensure our survival. Now you may be asking what do you mean super?'

Lexa laughed internally. She was unable to move any part of her body and couldn't exactly form a sentence.

'We hid one piece of information from you. Yes this was wrong of us but the council and I decided that if you were told of our aims before you agreed to the programme, people wouldn't join for the right reasons. We wanted people who were willing to give their lives for the cause. So now I must tell you this information because time is running out. At this very moment in time a serum is being pumped through your veins. We told you this was to prevent the radiation from affecting you but it does way more than just that. It enhances your DNA. Changes it. Warps it. Makes you stronger.

Basically it mutates your cells, giving you an enhancement of some kind. It's extremely complicated science and some of you may not understand. The Astra serum gives you super powers.'

Lexa feels her head begin to ache. She had only ever read about super powers. They were fantasy and didn't belong in the real world. There was no way it could ever be possible.

The image of Kane began to flicker as he continued. 'When you wake up you'll feel stronger and whilst the second part of the test showed us that you are able to survive the process, we are unable to predict the power you will end up with. It could be anything. Some of you may have noticed you woke up much quicker than others. We have drawn to the conclusion that people who woke up earlier on the second stage of testing, will again this time, wake up quicker. We don't understand why the times vary so much from person to person but I'm sure it will all become clear when you wake up.

The pain in Lexa's head was almost unbearable.

The image of Kane disappeared and then returned, flickering with Kane smiling and saying, 'See you on the other side.'

Then he disappeared for good and a fiery pain overcame Lexa's body.

* * *

 

_ **So that's the end of this chapter. I'm editing this at 2 in the morning and I can't even see straight, so as always I'm going to apologise for the grammar and spelling errors that probably fill this chapter!** _

_**Remember, tell me what you think and I've already started writing chapter 4. Its going to be the best one yet!** _

**Author's Note:**

> Thankyou for reading! I hope you enjoyed it.  
> Feel free to leave a comment! Whether it's constructive criticism, telling me how to improve my story or just a positive review, all are appreciated.  
> I can't wait for this story to properly begin, I have so much to write!!


End file.
